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Most people would not consider January an ideal time to plant crops, especially January in Montreal. But for Mohamed Hage, Kurt D. Lynn and Howard Resh, timing is one of the proof points of their project -- a commercial-scale rooftop greenhouse that's designed to yield produce year-round for an urban community.
Entrepreneurs Hage and Lynn and horticulture and hydroponics expert Resh are the brains behind Lufa Farms, which unveiled details last week about its 31,000-square-foot greenhouse being constructed atop a two-story office building in Montreal's Marché Central neighborhood.
Construction of the specially designed greenhouse began in July and is expected to be complete before year's end. Planting is scheduled to begin in January. On that timetable, the first crops would be harvested six weeks later.
"We're right on the threshold of completing the first commercial-scale rooftop greenhouse," said Lynn, Lufa Farms' co-founder and vice president, in an interview before taking the wraps off the project. "If it works in Montreal, it will work anywhere."
GreenerBuildings.com and GreenBiz.com have featured several articles on urban agriculture: farms called VertiCrops that mostly have been planted on the ground and were recognized by NASA for fostering water sustainability, the prospects for soaring high rise farms of the future, and another rooftop greenhouse business called Sky Vegetables, which was the subject of a piece last fall by GreenBiz Executive Editor Joel Makower.
While the idea of urban farming isn't new -- small-scale rooftop farms and herb gardens are key draws for green restaurants such as Uncommon Grounds in Chicago -- Lufa Farms lays claim to being the furthest along with a large-scale operation.
According to Lynn, he and his colleagues started batting the idea around about three-and-a-half years ago.
"The economics of food today forces us into compromises," Lynn said. "If I'm shipping things 2,000 miles, all along the way I'm increasing the handling of the food, affecting its taste, its freshness. It's a long food chain. My children don't know what a true tomato tastes like.
"Our goal simply is to be a neighborhood food source and raise the bar on the issue of traceability. We think it's important that people know where their food comes from, that they can say, 'Yes, I can see where my food is grown. It's grown right over there.' "
Next Page: The ultimate green roof.
I agree, if they could get a
I agree, if they could get a floor of that building for some fish growing they could probably cut their water usage by at least 30% by using the runoff from the fish - - lower costs all the way around and probably even speed some growth due to high nitrates. Way to go!
Food corps will lobby local
Food corps will lobby local Gov to outlaw it on outlandish claims of unsanitary conditions etc. If you're taking profit from someone you can bet they will fight.
i just hope someone at the city has the balls to help the locals fight back as this idea is exactly
what we all should be doing with our acres of wasted roof space that gets tons of rain and light.
good for you guys.
I would suggest that they
I would suggest that they keep Monsanto and their dirty little genetically modified fingers out of this great idea.
Love this idea and hope
Love this idea and hope others follow suit. Would be a nice addition to add aquaponics, then they could produce sustainable high-quality protein as well. Good luck guys!!
I think it's a great idea.
I think it's a great idea. The real question we should be asking ourselves is, "Why wouldn't you do this?"...not, "Why would you?" There is plenty of unutilized space on rooftops all over the world; why not let individuals with the skills, tools and desires to create value for themselves, the communities and the landlords do it? For the landlord, it allows them to extract value for something they're getting nothing for today, by charging rent to the farmers. For the farmers, it gives people an ability to make a living and creates jobs. Some people may enjoy farming, but they do not want to live in rural areas; this would solve their dilemmas. And, of course, it would benefit the local communities by delivering produce that is both fresher and less expensive due to proximity. The populations of the world are moving to the urban locations and are projected to continue this trend for a very long time; therefore, putting farms on rooftops only becomes more relevant and beneficial to many constituencies.